The owner of a skip hire company has been made to pay thousands of pounds after a huge amount of waste was found dumped in a disused colliery.

Mark Addlesee of Addlesee Skips, a registered company of Addlesee Timber & Haulage Limited, was fined and made to pay clearing up costs totalling more than £5000 after rubbish was found dumped at a former pit site on Waggons Way, Stainforth in Doncaster.

Doncaster Council's enforcement team launched an investigation after they received reports that five large piles of waste had been dumped.

Officers searches the site and found names and addresses of three individuals among some of the rubbish.

During interviews the trio all confirmed they had lawfully disposed of their waste with Addlesee Skips.

Mr Addlesee denied that the waste had been fly-tipped by his company, and no evidence was found that proved it had been.

However, he did claim that he had allowed another individual from outside the company to take away wood and cardboard from the site for free, although he kept no records regarding the transfer of the waste.

A Doncaster Council spokesperson said he therefore had not taken reasonable precautions to prevent the waste being fly-tipped.

Mr Addlesee pleaded guilty to failing to prevent an escape of waste at Doncaster Magistrates Court on July 27 and was fined £1500 and made to cough up clearing up costs of £3679.

The company, based in Belton in North Lincolnshire, has 28 days to pay.

After the case, councillor Chris McGuinness, cabinet member for communities, the voluntary sector and environment, said: “This is another brilliant result for our enforcement team following yet more in-depth and skilled investigation work.

"Once again, someone who has failed to properly dispose of their waste has been punished for spoiling Doncaster’s environment.

“We have made it clear with our 'This is my Doncaster' campaign that it is totally unacceptable whenever waste is fly-tipped in Doncaster, and this case proves that we will investigate environmental crime and catch culprits.”